There are several strategies used by professional translators for dealing with various tpes of non-equivalence.
Translation by a more general word (superordinate)
This is one of the most common strategies used to deal with many types of non-equivalence. The translator use general words to overcame a relative lack of specificity in the target language compared to the source language. What the translators of the preceding extracts have done is go up a level in a given semantic field to fifi nd a more general word that covers the core propositional meaning of the missing hyponym in the target language.
For example, ‘Shampooing’ can be seen as a type of ‘washing’ since it is more restricted in use: you can wash lots of things but you can only shampoo hair. Similarly, ‘orbiting’ is a type of ‘revolving’ because, unlike ‘revolving’, it only applies to a smaller object revolving around a larger one in space. What the translators of the preceding extracts have done is go up a level in a given semantic fifi eld to fifi nd a more general word that covers the core propositional meaning of the missing hyponym in the target language.
Translation by a more neutral/less expressive word
The Italian near equivalent, mugugnare, in contrast, tends to suggest dissatisfaction rather than embarrassment or confusion. Possibly to avoid conveying the wrong expressive meaning, the Italian translator opted for a more general word, suggerisce (‘suggest’).
There is a noticeable difference in the expressive meaning of mumble and its nearest Italian equivalent, mugugnare. The English verb mumble suggests confusion, disorientation or embarrassment.The Italian near equivalent, mugugnare, in contrast, tends to suggest dissatisfaction rather than embarrassment or confusion. Possibly to avoid conveying the wrong expressive meaning, the Italian translator opted for a more general word, suggerisce (‘suggest’). This strategy aimed to avoid different tendency associated with the word due to local custom.
Example
Source text ( A Study of Shamanistic Practices in Japan – Blacker 1975 :315):
The shamanic practices we have investigated are rightly seen as an archaic mysticism.
Target text (Japanese)
我々が探究してきたシャーマン的行為は、古代の神秘主義とし
て、考察されるべきものであろう。
The shamanic behaviour which we have been researching should rightly be considered as ancient mysticism.
The translator could have used a Japanese phrase that roughly means ‘behind the times’ and it would have been closer to propositional and expressive meaning of archaic. The expressive meaning of archaic will not be lost in the translation. But it will be too direct and too openly disapproving by Japanese Standards (Haruko Uryu, personal communication).
Translation by cultural substitution
This strategy involved replacing a culture-specific item or expression with a target-language item which does not have the propotional meaning but have more impact on the reader by evoking a similar context in the target culture.
The main advantage of using this strategy is that it gives the reader a concept with which he or she can identify, something familiar and appealing.
An interesting example of cultural substitution in the translation of comics is discussed in Celotti (2008: 40–41). In one panel from Didier Tronchet’s comic series Jean-Claude Tergal ( Figure 2.1 ), the translator adapts a sign above the door of a bar which reads Chez Raoul (literally ‘At Raoul’, or ‘Raoul’s’ – Raoul being a familiar French name), to read Bar Juventus in the Italian translation (Juventus is the name of a well-known Italian football club)
Translation using a loan word or loan word plus explanation
This strategy is particularly common in dealing with culture-specifific items, modern concepts and buzzwords.
Example
Source text ( A Study of Shamanistic Practices in Japan – Blacker 1975 :315):
The shamanic practices we have investigated are rightly seen as an archaic mysticism.
Target text (Japanese):
我々が探究してきたシャーマン的行為は、古代の神秘主義とし
て、考察されるべきものであろう。
The shamanic behaviour which we have been researching should rightly be considered as ancient mysticism.
Shaman is a technical word used in religious studies to refer to a priest or a priest doctor among the northern tribes of Asia. It has no ready equivalent in Japanese.
As with the strategy of cultural substitution, the freedom with which translators use loan words will often depend on the norms of translation prevailing in their societies. Arabic and French, for instance, are much less tolerant of the use of loan words in formal writing than Japanese, which may explain the preference for the use of a cognate rather than a loan word in the French translation.
Translation by paraphrase using a related word
This strategy tends to be used when the concept expressed by the source item is lexicalized in the target language but in a different form. And when the frequency with which a certain form is used in the source text is significantly higher than would be natural in the target language.
Example B
Source text ( Kolestral Super ):
The rich and creamy KOLESTRAL-SUPER is easy to apply and has a pleasant fragrance.
Target text (Arabic):
Kolestral-super is rich and concentrated in its make-up which gives a product that resembles cream.
The paraphrase in the Arabic text employs comparison, a strategy which can be used to deal with other types of non-equivalence.
Translation by paraphrase using unrelated words
If the concept expressed by the source item is not lexicalized at all in the target language, the paraphrase strategy can still be used in some contexts. Instead of a related word, the paraphrase may be based on modifying a superordinate or simply on unpacking the meaning of the source item, particularly if the item in question is semantically complex.
Example
Source text ( The Patrick Collection ):
You can even dine ‘ alfresco ’ in the summer on our open air terrace.
Target text (German):
Im Sommer können Sie auch auf der Terrasse im Freien sitzen und essen.
In the summer you can also sit and eat on the terrace in the open .
Alfresco, ‘in the open air’, is a loan word in English. Its meaning is unpacked in the German translation. The two expressions, alfresco and ‘in the open’, have the same ‘propositional’ meaning, but the German expression lacks the ‘evoked’ meaning of alfresco, which is perhaps inevitable in this case. Note that the loan word is placed in inverted commas in the source text.
The main advantage of the paraphrase strategy is that it achieves a high level of precision in specifying propositional meaning. One of its disadvantages is that a paraphrase does not have the status of a lexical item and therefore cannot convey expressive, evoked or any kind of associative meaning.
Translation by omission
This strategy may sound drastic but it does no harm to omit translating a word or expression in some contexts. If the meaning conveyed by a particular item or expression is not vital enough to the developmental of the text, translator can and often do simply omit translating the word or expression in question.
Example
Source text ( The Patrick Collection ):
This is your chance to remember the way things were, and for younger visitors to see in real-life detail the way their parents, and their parents before them lived and travelled.
Target text (French):
Voici l’occasion de retrouver votre jeunesse (qui sait?) et pour les plus jeunes de voir comment leurs parents et grands-parents vivaient et voyageaient.
Here is the chance to rediscover your youth (who knows?) and for the younger ones to see how their parents and grandparents used to live and travel.
There is inevitably some loss of meaning when words and expressions are omitted in a translation. It is therefore advisable to use this strategy only as a last resort, when the advantages of producing a smooth, readable translation clearly outweigh the value of rendering a particular meaning accurately in a given context.
This is a useful option if the word which lacks an equivalent in the target language refers to a physical entity that can be illustrated, particularly if there are restrictions on space and if the text has to remain short, concise and to the point.
